The Great Sadie Kane
by scullcandy
Summary: Sadie gets grievously injured and...read the story to find out. Will upload next chapter if reviewers ask nicely.
1. Chapter 1

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"Carter," Sadie called.

I stopped walking and turned around. My little sister was dressed for travel in her jeans and blouse, her hair braided and dip-dyed red, a small bag slung over her shoulder.

"Where're you going?"

She raised an eyebrow, "If you listened to me, you'd know. I told you this morning I'm going off to have lunch with Liz and Emma." She shifted her bag on her shoulder and scuffed the toe of her combat boot against the floor. She looked like something was bothering her.

"What's the matter?" I asked.

She looked up at me, startled. "Nothing, I suppose. It's just been a while since I've seen Liz or Emma, and the last time wasn't the best."

'Not the best' was an understatement in my opinion. Two gods possessed our grandparents and then attacked Sadie. She and her friends had to run for their lives. I'm surprised they wanted to be anywhere _near_ her after the fiasco that happened last time. Maybe that's what had her so on edge.

"What time are you planning on being back?" I didn't want to parent her, but I needed to know when she'd be back because everybody and their cousin was going to ask 'where's Sadie' for the next three hours.

"I dunno," she said. "Probably around four." She looked at me, waiting for me to tell her that was too long.

I sighed. If anybody else had wanted to disappear for three hours, unaccompanied, I would say no. But this was Sadie and it's not like she got to see her friends very much anymore.

"Alright," I nodded. "Just make sure you stay safe. Walt and Bast will have a cow if you come back injured."

She nodded, "got it. Just don't destroy the house or anything while I'm gone."

"She's late!" I exclaimed. I turned on my heels and began pacing in the other direction. I knew I was wearing a hole in the floor and I wasn't being much of a 'calming energy' in the room, but I didn't care. Sadie was supposed to have been back two hours ago.

"Carter, sit down," Alyssa said soothingly from the couch. "It's Sadie, she probably lost track of time."

" _Two hours_!" I hissed. "That's too much, even for Sadie!"

Walt shifted uneasily from the other side of the room. Walt was equally as concerned as I was, but his curse was awful today and he couldn't get up and move easily. He sat in the recliner, looking half-dead and worried sick about Sadie. Jaz whispered something to him and he shook his head. Jaz looked less than amused about Walt not being in bed.

Most of the recruits had migrated to the Great Room. They sat on the floor, on the couch, in the recliners, stood up. Bast was behind Walt, chewing her nails. Amos was at the First Nome, working with some old friends of his. I wished he was here. He'd be able to calm everyone down and make them go to their rooms. I barely had room to pace with everybody in here.

Suddenly my phone rang. I jumped over the couch and snatched it up, nearly cleaving Cleo in the head on my way over.

"Sadie where the hell are you?!" I demanded.

"Is this Carter Kane?" a professional female voice asked.

I felt like I'd swallowed a clump of wet cement. "Y-yes."

"I'm sorry to inform you, but your sister is in critical condition at the First Nome Infirmary."

It took me a minute for the shock to set in. Bast appeared at my side and gently pried the phone from my hands.

"I'm sorry, could you please repeat that?" She prompted politely. There was incoherent words as the woman on the other end repeated her message. All the color drained from Bast's face and she raised a shaking hand to cover her mouth in horror.

"Y-yes," Bast said softly. "Yes, we'll be on our way." She closed my phone with a snap and put a hand on my shoulder, steadying herself. I'd never seen her look so lost.

"My kitten, my poor kitten," she said, tears filling her eyes. I was in too much shock to register the fact that Bast was near tears.

All of our recruits were looking at us. Walt was on the edge of his chair, and Cleo had closed her book.

I couldn't find my voice. I couldn't find anything reassuring to say.

Eventually, Bast found her voice. She turned to the recruits, her yellow eyes full of tears. "Sadie, she," Bast cleared her throat, her voice weak. "She's been hurt. They don't know if she'll make it through the night."

I choked. The room seemed to spin. I staggered over to the couch. Cleo moved out of my way and I fell hard, sitting down and burying my head in my hands.

 _They don't know if she'll make it through the night._

To my shame, I started to sob. My little sister-my infuriating, annoying, little sister-was _dying_. She had her rough moments, but she was loyal, and could be sweet, and she always had my back.

And now she was on hers, in an infirmary, dying. I sobbed harder, the tears flowing down my cheeks. I kept my head in my hands, not letting the trainees see me cry.

Large hands rubbed my back. I looked up in surprise, expecting to see Amos. Instead, Walt had sat next to me and was trying to comfort me. He looked like he was being burned, but he wasn't crying.

"Cry now if you're going to," he said, his voice compassionate but firm. "But you aren't going to break down in front of her. Get it out now before we go see her. Sadie will get out of that bed and ring my neck if you're crying."

Through my tears, I chuckled. It sounded strangled and unnatural. "Why would she ring _your_ neck for _me_ crying?"

He rolled his eyes, "because it's Sadie. She loves to wring my neck."

I sniffled, wiping my eyes on my sleeves. The rest of our recruits were in tears or about to be in tears.

"When are we going to see her?" I asked, my voice still shaking.

Bast pointed towards a portal that had opened sometime while I was crying. "We can go now. Sadie said to 'drag Walt along'."

Walt stood up and pulled me to my feet. "Consider me dragged," he said calmly.

We walked out to the patio and stepped into the portal before the rest of Brooklyn House decided they wanted to come too.

When we stepped out, a tall middle aged healer was waiting for us.

"She is this way," the woman said, indicating to a hallway to our right. Her voice sounded like the one that had been on the phone.

I had to restrain myself from bolting down the corridor and locking myself in Sadie's sickroom. Instead, I followed Bast and Walt in a numb state and thought about things I didn't want to think about.

I don't know what condition I expected Sadie to be in, but it wasn't this. When we got there, she was lying in a hospital bed, in a small room. She looked like she was asleep, her features relaxed and peaceful. Bandages covered her arms, neck, and hands. I saw more around her waist. There were stitches on her forehead. There were dark bruises on her arms and jaw and the healthy tan of her skin had turned greyish. An IV was beside her, a needle imbedded at her wrist. Her breathing was deep but strained. The machine at her side that was monitoring her heart rate was muted, but the lines were all over the place. My throat got tight as I went to her side. I had never seen Sadie look so broken.

I sat down and Walt followed, looking morbid.

Bast was beside herself. She made a sound so heart-wrenching it made me cringe. She darted to Sadie and threw her arms around Sadie.

"My kitten!" She wailed, tears flowing from her eyes. "My poor kitten!"

Sadie apparently wasn't too deep asleep because she woke right up to Bast's tears.

"Bast?" she mumbled, her voice weak. "'s wrong?"

"You," she sobbed. "My poor kitten!"

Sadie managed to still have her sense of humor, even on her deathbed. She mustered up enough strength to keep her voice from shaking and raised an eyebrow down at Bast. "I'm not even dead yet, but you're crying?" she twisted up to look at Walt, "Bloody hell, that _is_ annoying. No wonder you're always grouchy."

Walt managed a faint smile and took Sadie's frail hand, running his thumb over the bandages. "What's the damage?" he asked gently.

Sadie sighed. "Broken ribs, burned hands, fractured skull, internal bleeding, my vertebrae had to be put back where they're supposed to be, and apparently I mentally, physically, and magically exhausted all my reserves. Nothing too bad."

I had to admire Sadie's attempt at bravery. She was obviously in an incredible amount of pain and her heart rate was all over the place. Yet, she still tried to joke and get us to laugh.

I could've cried. It was obvious Sadie was a wreck. The healers here were the best in the world, but a magician can only take so much magic healing before it starts having the opposite effect. I knew they'd done their best to heal her, so if this was what was left of her injuries, I shuddered to think what they had all started off as.

"Kitten, what happened?" Bast said, petting Sadie's hair.

Sadie shifted and tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. Even that small movement seemed to exhaust her. Walt hovered, but there was nothing any of us could do. It was a few minutes before the color returned to her cheeks.

"I went and had lunch with Liz and Emma," Sadie said, her voice weak. "When they left, I went to come home, I went towards the museum. When I turned the corner," her voice caught and she trembled, fear clouding her eyes. Bast hurried to calm her down before she could break into a million pieces.

"There were so many," Sadie whispered. She buried her face in her bandaged hands and the heart rate monitor beeped rapidly.

Immediately, the middle-aged woman we'd seen at the front hurried into the room with a syringe. She inserted the clear liquid into the IV and immediately, Sadie's eyes became heavy. Her sobs were stopped and her head drooped.

"Harsh, I know," the woman said, shaking her head when she saw our horrified expressions. "I don't like doing that, but any strain on her mind will be the end of her. She's too weak. Really, we shouldn't have allowed her visitors, but the poor thing was insistent to see you."

I looked at my baby sister, passed out and bandaged. "Will she recover?"

The nurse looked at me hard and I was afraid for the answer.

"…her physical wounds might heal, if she can just make it through the night. She's very weak, but with a lot of attention and medical care, she should have a chance at recovery. However, she is in a great deal of pain, and it won't get much easier for her. She might not want to go through the pain of having all those broken bones and bruised sinew righted. It will take many incredibly painful spells for her to ever be able to function again. I hate to suggest it," she paused, giving me a sympathetic look. "It might be kinder to let her go. She's young, she could have a happy afterlife."

Bast snarled viciously, "Now is not the time to discuss this!"

The healer didn't look scared. She gave Bast a small bow and looked me in the eye. "I was only making sure you were informed. You are her blood relative and although the decision is her legal guardian's-Amos-you still have a heavily weighted opinion in this."

She left ordered us not to upset Sadie when she came around, and Bast nearly took a swipe at her. Thankfully, the healer seemed to pick up on the hind that she'd overstepped her boundaries, and she left.

"I need to speak with Amos," Bast said, rising out of her chair. She looked at me lovingly. "Don't fret Carter, Sadie's a strong little alley-cat. She'll be okay." Despite her words, Bast looked at Sadie as if she was already dead. She leaned down and kissed my sister's bandaged forehead before leaving.

Once she was gone, Walt took Bast's seat. "Man, I thought," his voice broke. "I thought she was dead when we walked in. I don't even know what I would do if she died."

I nodded, sitting back down at her other side. "You and me both."

We stayed there for a while. After a few minutes, Walt seemed to forget I was there and he put his head on Sadie's shoulder. She shifted and her eyes fluttered, the heart-rate monitor picking up as she came around.

"Did they drug me again?" she asked, her voice still sleepy.

"Yeah and we aren't allowed to upset you anymore," Walt said, moving off of her shoulder. "Meaning we have to keep you happy," he gave a weak chuckle, "we're in for trouble aren't we?"

"Well then, since I have you two as slaves, food would be lovely," Sadie said, casting me a hopeful look. I almost told Walt to go get it, but I realized Sadie probably wanted to talk to him without me listening in. I sighed and left, giving Walt a warning look before I left.

When I came back, Sadie looked incredibly content. I didn't know what she'd done, but Walt was holding her hands and petting her hair, as if their trip to Egypt had never happened. I knew he'd been trying to distance himself from her for the past few months, but now it looked like he had dropped that, at least for now, and was trying to keep her happy. It looked like it was working, too. Sadie was practically purring.

I handed her a plate of food and she took it gratefully. "Thanks, brother dear. Now, about you putting me down," she raised and eyebrow at me. "I hope you weren't actually planning on putting my amazingness down, hm?"

I swallowed hard, "Sadie, I don't think I could do that, even if it had to be done."

She looked relieved, "oh thank gods. I thought you would try to do the 'right' thing and keep me from suffering and so on."

I balked, "Sadie-I wouldn't-that would be-no-"

"Oh, stop stuttering," Sadie said, rolling her eyes. She gingerly picked up the fork and took a small bite of the enchiladas I'd brought her. Once she'd swallowed, she shuddered and put the plate on the table.

"What? Aren't they good?" Walt asked.

She shook her head, "I had really a bad bit of internal bleeding and such and don't think It's quite as fixed as the healers think it is-" Suddenly she curled over her stomach and screamed.

"Sadie!" I leapt to her side and Walt towered over her.

"H-healer," Sadie said, gasping for air.

Walt turned and flew out the door, calling for a healer. Immediately, three came in and pushed Walt and I in the hallway, shutting the door quickly behind him. The last thing I saw was them knock her out with sedatives.


	2. Chapter 2

**Sorry guys, I actually wrote this chapter before I stopped writing, but I forgot to upload it. I know its been two years but OOPS is all I got.**

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I was less than calm about being thrown in a hallway. Walt had to grab me to keep me from running back into Sadie's sickroom.

"We can't do anything," he said through his teeth. "The healers have to fix her and we don't need to be distracting them!"

I stopped fighting and slumped against him, a sob threatening to escape.

"I never paid enough attention to her," I nearly cried.

Walt let me go and looked me in the eyes, pain evident on his face. "How do you think _I_ feel? If she dies, I lose one of the only people I've ever loved. I spent the last six months pushing her away and if she _dies_ ," his voice cracked. "Then that's it. I wasted my time with her."

His lip trembled and he looked away.

"I'm sorry man," I said, shoving my hands in my pockets. I couldn't imagine what this must be like for him. I hadn't even _thought_ about Walt being in love with Sadie. I thought it was just a simple crush, but seeing his expression now, I knew that wasn't the case. The big guy was ready to fall apart.

"I'm sorry," I repeated.

He nodded, looking down, "let's go find Amos and Bast," he suggested quietly. "We aren't doing anything useful out here."

I didn't want to leave, just in case the healers left, but I knew they wouldn't be out for a few hours at the least. Sadie had mentioned internal bleeding, and that alone required heavy spells that took time. They wouldn't be done for a while, and even when they were, she probably wouldn't be awake.

"Yeah," I said halfheartedly. "Let's go find our cat."

Walt and I walked down the hall dejectedly. Neither one of us knew where we were going, but we knew we couldn't just stand outside Sadie's room.

"Carter, if it's any consolation, Anubis probably won't let her die," Walt said quietly.

"Why do you say that?"

He shook his head and continued walking. "He wants Sadie to live a full life before she dies, so she won't have any regrets."

I blinked, "what do you mean, 'regrets'?"

Walt shrugged, "I don't know. People die all the time wishing that they'd done something they never did."

I wanted to ask him what he wanted to do before he died, but that seemed a little unsympathetic. I doubted he wanted to think about dying, especially when Sadie was on her way out-

 _No. doesn't think like that. It's_ Sadie, _she won't give up,_ I thought firmly. She _can't_ give up. I trembled and Walt had to grab my elbow and lead me down the corridor so I didn't collapse.

"She's not supposed to die," I nearly sobbed. Walt nodded and patted my back, almost knocking me down.

"She won't," he promised. His words sounded empty and he looked on the verge of tears too. I doubted he felt any better about all of this than I did. I slumped into him for support. Through my grief, I was glad Sadie had made him come. I couldn't bear all this alone.

We eventually found Amos and Bast. They were arguing in low voices in the courtroom when we walked in. The second he saw me leaning on Walt, Amos swept us both into a tight hug. Amos typically didn't hug very much, and I fell apart at the gesture. My stupid, irrational, pain-in-the-ass sister was dying and I couldn't handle it. I wept miserably into his vest.

"There, there," Amos said, patting my back. Walt pulled out of Amos's arms and excused himself in a broken voice. Soft grey smoke was curling from his fingers.

"Go down the hall and take three lefts," Amos said compassionately, looking at Walt's hand. "There's an old training room in there. Don't worry about cleaning up the ashes when you're done."

"Thanks." Walt turned and walked quickly away, holding him hand away from him like it was a grenade.

I looked up at Amos and sniffled when Walt was gone, pulling out of Amos's embrace.

"Sadie-" I started.

"Hush, there now, I already told him," Bast assured me.

"N-no, something happened. The healers had to come in, they shoved Walt and I in the hall, s-she looked awful-" I trembled, unable to go on. Her scream of pain was ringing in my ears.

Amos nodded, "I got the call. The healers are doing their best to patch her up again."

Bast patted my shoulder, "I have to go inform your father what happened to his kitten. Will you come with me, my little tom cat? I need company and I think Julius might want you within eyesight for the night."

The prospect of seeing Dad was more than tempting, but I still hesitated.

"I want to be here when she comes around."

Amos sighed and patted me on the shoulder. "I will be sure to alert you and Julius when she's awake."

I nodded slowly, knowing that was as good of an offer that I was going to get. I let Bast lead me out of the room. I was just starting to wonder what Walt was going to do when I ran into him. Literally. He nearly knocked me to the floor. Bast caught me before I could crash to the ground.

"Sorry," Walt yelped. "I got lost and I was trying to find you and-"

"It's fine," I brushed myself off and sighed. "I'm going to hell, would you like to tag along?"

Walt didn't even blink, "well, yeah. Obviously. What are friends for?"

I chuckled softly. Now I was really glad Sadie had made him come. Walt was steady even when things fell apart. Though, he looked like he was on the verge of falling apart. It occurred to me that Walt had barely let any emotional upset show through during all this. Judging from the scent of ashes on him, I had a feeling I knew why. Sadie being hurt upset him more than he was letting on and he was afraid of hurting anybody.

Bast looked at both of us and smiled fondly. "My two tom cats. Even without Sadie, I still end up taking two kittens to and from."

The comment about Sadie made my chest constrict painfully. I kept my eyes down and followed Bast as she led us to a portal. Walt shadowed behind me like he was ready to catch me when I fainted. With how lightheaded I felt, it might be a possibility. Though I doubted falling on Walt would be any more comfortable than falling on the stone floor.

The portal to the Hall of Judgment was bumpier than I'd thought it would be. We all landed in a heap on the shore of fire, outside the temple.

"I called the dog," Bast said as she stood up and brushed herself off.

"I am not a dog. But I'll let you slide this time because your youngest charge is ill," a melodic voice crooned.  
I leapt to my feet. Anubis was standing in front of us, his expression somber. He walked briskly forward and, to my surprise, helped Walt to his feet. Then he turned to me, his eyes sympathetic.

"I am sorry about your sister. If it is any consolation, she is not dead. I've already visited with her," a smile tugged at his lips. "She nearly bit my hand off, thinking I was there to collect her soul." He held up his hand to show a bandage wrapped around his palm.

Walt rolled his eyes, "it's not a decent conversation with Sadie until you leave bloody or bruised in one way or another."

Anubis nodded in agreement, as if this was perfectly relatable. Bast looked slightly proud that Sadie had nearly bitten off her least favorite god's hand.

"Have you told Julius?" she asked.

Anubis shook his head, "I couldn't bring myself to tell him that his youngest was in such bad shape. He knows something's wrong though. I think Mistress Ruby might have a hunch, she's been pacing non-stop for hours."

Bast nodded, "I thought Carter might be able to ease his grief. Walt…well I couldn't just leave him in the First Nome."

Anubis nodded, "I needed to talk with him anyway-"

"What would you want with him?" Bast asked, her voice turning sharp.

"Bast, it's fine," Walt said, stepping to Anubis's side. Anubis bristled, but when he looked at Walt, there was nothing but sympathy in his eyes.

Bast looked like she wanted very badly to argue, but she relented, on the condition that Walt and Anubis stay on the shores to talk. That way she could shove Anubis into the fire if he tried to collect Walt's soul.

"I assume you know where the throne room is?" Anubis said.

Bast nodded stiffly and Anubis left, leading Walt to the sandy shore of the lake of fire. As they left, I thought I heard Walt start to sob. I wanted to run after him and try to comfort him like he'd done for me all day, but Bast shook her head and led me into the temple.

"That dog has dealt with the grieving since the dawn of time," she said, her voice stiff. "As much as I hate to admit it, he's probably the best to console Walt."

We walked on, neither of us talking after that. The Hall of Judgment was just how I remembered: tall columns, high ceilings, dark everything. Fire was lit every few feet in braziers, casting a warm glow everywhere.

We walked down the steps of the Throne Room. Court wasn't in action and I could see why. The ghost of my mom was drifting back and forth, unease radiating from her. On the throne, my dad sat, shifting around and trying to talk my mom into sitting down. When they saw us, my mother darted to me, throwing her arms around me. It felt like a breeze wrapping around me.

My father rose out of his throne and mom sidestepped, letting him hug me too. Dad _did not_ feel like a summer breeze. He bear hugged me and I had to gasp for air over his shoulder.

"Dad," I wheezed. "That cracking sound is my spine."

He chuckled and let me go, studying me with affection. I almost started to cry again.

"My lord," Bast said, nervously twisting her hands together. "I bring…unfortunate news."

Dad turned to her, his expression hardening. "What do you mean ' _unfortunate news'_?"

Bast paled, "I seem to have s-slipped my duties. Sadie is, my kitten-your kitten I mean-she's-"

"Stop stuttering and tell me what's wrong with my child!" He ordered. The color had drained from his face too. Behind him, mom whispered that she'd known something was wrong.

"Sadie…" Bast trembled, unable to get her thoughts together.

I decided to save her before Dad lost it. "Sadie's hurt," I said, looking down. "She went to London and there was a hoard of monsters waiting for her. She's at the First Nome infirmary and…she doesn't look that great." My lip trembled and I wanted to be back to this morning, so I could tell Sadie not to go.

Dad sucked in a breath and looked at Bast in horror, "is she going to die?"

"I don't know, my lord, the damage was far more extensive than she should have been able to survive in the first place. Her vertebrae were knocked out of place in some areas and her skull was fractured, and those were just a few of the life-threatening injuries." Bast bit her lip, not wanting to say anymore.

"She's in a lot of pain," I muttered. "I never should have let her go to London alone."

Dad put his hand on my shoulder, "It's not your fault, Carter."

Mom fluttered and twisted her hand, "we have to go see her. Julius, can't you-?"

"Amos said he would call when she woke up," Bast interrupted, shifting worriedly.

"Well then, I guess we'll just wait for that," Dad said, his voice slightly shaky. "We'll go see her when she's awake. Now, where did Anubis go?"

"He kidnapped Walt, they're on the shores," I said tonelessly.

"Who's Walt?"

I was tempted to tell him Walt was Sadie's boyfriend, if only so he could give her a hard time, but I decided to be nice since she was in such bad shape. "He's my friend. Sadie and I drag him everywhere when we go off to save the world."

"Poor boy," my mother said.

"He sounds interesting," Dad said, rubbing his chin. "He's fond of your sister? Are they dating?"

"She'd sure like them to be," I muttered. Bast elbowed me, "No, my lord, they're not," she said firmly, giving me a stern glare. "Walt is the ancestor of King Tut…the curse is taking him over quickly. He doesn't have more than a year to live."

I must've flinched pretty hard, because Dad pulled me into a hug. I almost started to cry again. I felt like I'd done enough crying though, so I gave a shaky breath and tried to enjoy my dad hugging me.

We ended up going to a separate room, which was kinda the Hall of Judgment living room. There were stuffed couches, set in a semi-circle around a huge mounted TV. Bast settled herself in a recliner and Dad and Mom sat on the love seat.

I walked over to sit on a large leather recliner and Dad shook his head at me. "That's Anubis's spot," he explained. "That and the East Wing of the hall belong to him. I wouldn't sit there if I was you."

Just then, Anubis came in and sat down in his spot. He looked tense, his jaw clenching.

"Where's Walt?" I demanded.

Anubis tossed something to me. I raised my hand to catch it.

It was a heavy metal chain. It looked like jewelry chain, but it was so heavy I could barely lift it. Every link was engraved with hieroglyphs.

"That's necromantic chain," Anubis said, raising his hands. I tossed it back with some difficulty.

"What does that have to do with Walt?"

"He keeps turning things to ash without meaning to," Anubis said patiently. "His powers are getting harder for him to control. The chain stops the flow of necromantic magic before anyone or anything gets hurt."

"You're chaining him up like a dog," Bast hissed from the corner of the room.

Anubis's eyes flashed dangerously. The room dropped several degrees. Even Dad shifted uncomfortably.

"He can still use magic. He can still use necromancy. But he won't be able to accidentally disintegrate anything. Or," he said, his silken tone turning hard. "Would you prefer that he accidently reduce Sadie's bones to ashes when he gets upset and she stands too close?"

Bast gasped and lunged to choke Anubis, who got up and neatly sidestepped.

" _How dare you insinuate that I would allow Sadie to be hurt_!" She shrieked.

"She's hurt now, isn't she?" Anubis said, his eyes filling with hatred as he glared at Bast.

Dad leapt up and grabbed Bast before she could behead Anubis. Anubis stayed standing, his face expressionless. I thought I might've seen a flash of morose in his eyes-but it was too fast for me to be sure.

Just as Bast started to twist out of Dad's hold, my phone rang.

Everybody stopped moving.

I snatched up the phone. "Hello?!"

"Sadie's awake," Amos rumbled. "But she's not taking to the operation as well as hoped. We're back to the beginning, not knowing if she'll make it through the night."

I stifled a sob, "O-okay."

Amos sighed, "Everybody needs to come see her. She's highly aggravated that you two left."

"Y-yeah, of course. We're coming," I said tonelessly. I didn't know what else to say, so I hung up.

"Well?" Dad said, looking at me expectantly.

"She's awake," I said miserably. "And she probably won't make it through the night."

My mom put her hands over her mouth and I looked down, blinking back tears. This was so messed up. After all Sadie had done, and she goes out like this?

My dad slid off his couch and sat next to me on the floor, pulling me under his arms. I sniffled and tried not to fall into a million pieces. From the corner of the room, I saw Anubis shake his head, looking respectful and every bit as upset as my mom or dad. Bast was beside herself. She ran out of the room, mewling.

I think I felt sorrier for Walt than me. He walked in during all of this and took one look at my face and thought Sadie was already dead. His whole body trembled and Anubis briskly walked to his side, took Walt's elbow, and dragged him into the hallway, murmuring firmly that Sadie wasn't dead yet.

As much as I hated to admit it, Anubis was right. Sadie wasn't even dead yet and we were grieving her.

"C'mon," I said, trying to sound brave. "Sadie's going to tear your head off if we aren't there soon."

Dad nodded and rose to his feet, wiped a tear from his eye, and pulled me to my feet too. Mom sniffled and held Dad's arm to steady herself.

"My baby," she sobbed softly. "My poor baby."

"She's not dead yet," I said, keeping my voice from shaking. "And she probably won't appreciate you acting like she is."

Mom nodded, dabbing her eyes, "Yes, you're right. It's just upsetting."

"Yeah, tell me about it," I mumbled.

We walked out and collecting Anubis, Walt, and Bast on the way to the portal. I noticed that Walt's wrists were bound with a thin silver chain, half the width of the one Anubis had thrown me. It was barely noticeable and Walt seemed a little more at ease now that he didn't have to worry about turning anything or anybody to ashes.

Dad cast the portal and instructed us to go three at a time. Anubis, Walt, and I would go first, then Dad, Mom, and Bast.

Dad's portal was a lot smoother than Amos's. Once we went through, we almost instantly landed on our feet, right outside Sadie's sickroom. The door was closed and everything was quiet.

Dad, Mom, and Bast popped into existence behind us, making everybody but Anubis jump.

"How bad is she?" Dad asked me, looking down uneasily.

"Not that great," I muttered. "I thought she was already dead the first time I went in."

Dad shuddered and nodded, "alright, let's go. There's no sense in standing out in the hallway."

We all collectively took a deep breath and then filed into Sadie's room.

To my relief, she looked almost the same as last time. She was laying in the bed, same as before, heavily bandaged and weak. Now a blanket had been thrown over her, which was stained with droplets of blood. Dark circles were under her eyes and she shifted in her sleep.

"Sweetheart," Dad said, his throat tight. He sat down in the chair Walt had had, just this morning. Mom hovered behind him and I sat down in the same seat I'd had earlier. Anubis lurked in the corner, Walt and Bast took the other side of the room.

Sadie's eyes fluttered. When she saw all of us, her lips twitched. "Right popular, aren't I?" she croaked, looking around the room.

Dad chuckled and pet her hair back, avoiding the bandages on her forehead.

"Should've gotten injured months ago," Sadie said, her eyes full of humor. "Then I could've seen all of you in one place sooner."

"Sadie, that's not funny," I said firmly.

She sighed, her breath coming out rattled. "I know, but what else am I supposed to do? Cry?" She settled down and winced. "Either my spine isn't totally healed, or this is the most uncomfortable bed I've ever been on."

Walt chuckled from the corner of the room, "I don't think that's the most pressing issue."

Sadie rolled her eyes, "Probably not. Now, stop lurking in the corners of my room Bast, get over here." She looked over at Anubis, "I can see you too. Stop lurking at get over here.

"I'm not 'lurking'," Anubis said, raising an eyebrow at her. He stepped over and stood in the light though. "I'm staying far away from your teeth."

She stuck her tongue out at him, and he rolled his eyes.

Walt inched closer and Sadie smiled at him, making Anubis bristle. Dad noticed and smirked at Sadie.

"Are you having fun, tormenting these two?"

Sadie nodded, then winced at the movement. Mom leaned over, "What hurts?"

"The better question is what doesn't hurt," Sadie said, cringing. Dad took ahold of her hand and Sadie's frail fingers clung to his. She looked so weak when she wasn't talking and joking. Walt and Anubis both inched closer

"I'm fine," Sadie almost whimpered. "Just a bit bashed up. A little rest and I'll be good as new…right?" she looked at all of us, silently begging someone to agree with her, to promise she'd be okay.

Nobody answered for a long time. Finally Anubis shrugged, "well, I don't know about your father, but _I'm_ certainly not collecting your soul anytime soon. Not until you're feeble and have lost all your teeth."

Sadie gave a weak, grateful smile, "I could still snap at you with my dentures."

Everybody chuckled, even Anubis, who looked content that he could lighten the mood. I doubt that was something he did often.

Eventually, everybody settled into light conversation. Sadie lay in her bed, listening to all of us talk at her. Bast started mewling in grief halfway through and ran out of the room, sobbing that she'd failed as a protector.

Sadie twisted up and looked at Anubis, eyebrow raised, "Well Deathboy? Go get her."

"Me?! Why me?" Anubis spluttered. "I hate that-"

"Go on," Sadie said, fluttering her lashes. "You said you'd be my slave and do my bidding."

"I said I'd visit you."

"Practically the same sentence," Sadie said, waving her hand weakly. It looked like the effort of that small movement nearly knocked her out. She paled and slumped into her bed, trembling weakly. Anubis immediately gave up when he saw Sadie struggling to stay conscious. He walked to her and knelt, kissing her cheek gently.

"Of course, my Lady Kane," he said loyally. "I'll go get your cat."

He walked out quickly, shutting the door behind him.

There was a loud bang, a scream, and Anubis walked back in almost instantly, with Bast slung over his shoulder. Her hands, ankles, and mouth were gagged with mummy wrappings. A ghost of a smile lit Sadie's face.

Anubis dropped Bast on the floor next to Sadie's bed. Sadie smiled weakly.

Bast mewled in remorse in the floor by Sadie's bed. Sadie patted her head, and untied her mouth.

"Bast, I'll be okay."

"Will you?"

 **Guys I'm so Sorry I swear I will write an ending to this next week. You guys can thank Rayne. He was deeply disturbed that I left you on a cliffhanger for 2 years. Comment "Thank you Rayne" for a finale third chapter.**


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